


Battle of the Bears

by luxbuhree



Category: Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series)
Genre: Carnival, Fluff, M/M, Over-competitive Shane, Shooting Game Booth, So Many Teddy Bears, innocent ryan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-22
Updated: 2018-06-22
Packaged: 2019-05-26 19:19:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15007607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/luxbuhree/pseuds/luxbuhree
Summary: It was just another friendly visit to the carnival for Shane and Ryan. All was well... until a stranger hitting on Ryan triggered Shane's competitive and possessive side.





	Battle of the Bears

 

-

“Isn’t it beautiful?” Ryan voiced out.

 

They were standing in the middle of the carnival grounds. There were food stalls lined up on either side of them, the tantalizing aroma bringing promises of deep-fried Snickers bars, deep-fried pizza, deep-fried donuts — basically anything you could possibly deep-fry. There were game booths with flashing lights, beckoning them from the distance. Even from afar, you could see the brightly colored prizes perched on wooden shelves, just waiting to be won. And of course, there were the rides — the loopy rollercoasters, a spinning merry-go-round, and a gigantic ferris wheel, among many others.

 

When Ryan had asked — no, _begged_ — Shane to come with him, the big guy couldn’t refuse. How could he? The combination of puppy eyes and an adorable pout had penetrated his armor. And it didn’t help that Shane reveled at the idea of having Ryan all to himself, even if it was just for the night.

 

Shane glanced at him from his peripheral vision. Ryan’s eyes were shining with the reflection of the colored fairy lights strewn above them. His mouth was parted in awe. Shane couldn’t help but smile. Maybe sacrificing his evening of home relaxation was worth it, if just to see Ryan this happy.

 

“Let’s get going, then,” Shane said, successfully pulling Ryan out of his trance. The latter smiled at him brightly and pulled him toward the rollercoasters. Shane shivered, though it had nothing to do with the chilly air. It had more to do with Ryan’s hand, which was clasping his wrist tightly, as he led them to the line of people.

 

For the next two hours, they roamed from point to point. Since it was late in the evening, there were less people, meaning the lines were also shorter. They were able to ride every possible ride, even going again on a rollercoaster that Ryan had enjoyed so much. By the time they were finished, they were both tired and hungry.

 

“Wanna grab a bite? I’ll pay,” Shane offered.

 

“You don’t have to pay for me, but if you insist,” Ryan replied with fake meekness. Shane elbowed him.

 

He brought them to a food stall that sold mouth-watering corndogs. He ordered 4 corndogs, 2 for each of them, and two Cokes. Ryan and he leaned against the side of the booth as they ate their food.

 

“This is amazing,” Ryan moaned. “I could eat 10 of these.”

 

“I’m not paying for 10 more corndogs. You can go pay for them with your own money… and your own health.”

 

“Whatever. I’m here for a good time, not a long time.”

 

“Spoken like a true frat boy,” Shane tittered, earning him a hard step on his foot. “Ouch!”

 

Ryan ignored his exclamation of pain. “What do you want to do next?”

 

“I’ve still got some money. Maybe we can play in the game booths?” Shane suggested.

 

“You get too competitive, though,” Ryan muttered, but he followed nonetheless.

 

They arrived at a booth that caught their eye with the colorful array of teddy bears lined up.

 

“Step right up! Ah, yes, you two young lads look like good shots. Perhaps you’d like to try your luck in this booth? Fabulous prizes await!” the booth man advertised.

 

There were four plastic guns spaced evenly across the booth. And directly in front of each, were 10 metal plates — 5 on top, 5 below — that would fall backwards when shot.

 

“What do you have to do?” Ryan asked the booth man.

 

“For 2 dollars, you get 10 bullets. If you shoot down all ten plates, you get to pick a bear from the top shelf. If you shoot down 8 or 9, you choose from the middle shelf. And if you shoot down 6 or 7, you choose from the bottom shelf. Any lower than that, you get nothing,” he explained, gesturing to the shelves behind him.

 

As he said, on the top shelf, there were 50-inch teddy bears in different colors and designs. On the middle shelf were bears half that size. And on the bottom were the regular-sized bears. Shane zeroed in on a white bear on the top shelf, whose bottom half morphed into a ghost tail, instead of legs. He _really_ wanted to win Ryan that prize, but he wasn’t that great in shooting games.

 

Both he and Ryan paid 2 bucks. They received their bullets and loaded them into the plastic guns. They took the 2 middle spaces.

 

“Do you know how to shoot straight?” Ryan asked him.

 

“A little. You?”

 

“No, and I’m not deluding myself into thinking I can win anything. After this round, I’m done,” he informed Shane. “Please don’t go crazy with power lust.”

 

“Hey! I’ve never gone crazy with power lust.”

 

Ryan coughed violently. It sounded suspiciously like _‘liar’_.

 

“Look, I am _not_ going crazy over this. I stopped being overly competitive,” Shane swore.

 

Ryan deflated. “Fine. Whatever. But I’ll still stay to support you if you do.”

 

Shane felt a rush of affection for him. “Alright, buddy.”

 

Just as they were about to begin shooting, a guy wearing eyeglasses and sporting some stubble joined them. He took the spot next to Shane.

 

“Hey, mate,” the man chirped lively as he loaded his own gun. “The name’s Conrad. No need to introduce yourself.”

 

“Hello,” Shane greeted cautiously. Ryan was busy having a conversation with a young boy who was playing next to him.

 

“Care for a friendly competition?” Conrad asked.

 

“I’m not that good,” Shane said honestly.

 

“Too bad,” he sighed. “I was thinking of playing you for your friend’s number.”

 

Conrad stared pointedly at Ryan, who was engrossed in helping the young boy load his bullets. Shane felt a wave of irritation at the stranger. Who did he think he was?

 

“I wouldn’t have agreed,” he snapped.

 

“Woah, no need to get angry,” Conrad placated. “It was just a thought.”

 

Not bothering him with a reply, Shane decided to start playing. He aimed his first bullet at the metal plate in the bottom middle. However, he missed. With his jaw clenched, he finished off his bullets. In the end, he only got 4 out of 10. He heard Conrad chuckle.

 

“Think you can do better?” Shane challenged, his temper rising to the surface. There was something about the guy that made his blood boil.

 

“I know I can,” Conrad bragged. He proceeded to shoot down 8 out of the 10 plates.

 

“Congratulations!” the booth man said. “Pick your prize!”

 

Ryan and the young boy were already done playing — neither of them had gotten more than 3. They were all watching as the booth man reached to get a pale blue teddy bear. He handed it to Conrad, who had a smug grin on his face.

 

“For you, love,” Conrad drawled, as he pushed past Shane to get to Ryan, and gave him the bear. Shane wanted nothing more but to shove the gun up his nose.

 

Ryan’s cheeks turned red, as he accepted it. He sputtered out a thank you before looking to Shane with confusion. With a wink, Conrad turned back around and purposely bumped into Shane’s shoulder.

 

“You lose,” he mocked, before disappearing into the crowd.

 

Shane stood there seething, his hand squeezing hard on the plastic gun. Ryan walked toward him, the bear still clutched in his arms.

 

“That was weird,” Ryan stated. “But I guess I have a bear now. Ready to go?”

 

“I’m having another go,” Shane hissed.

 

“Okay…” Ryan trailed off, his eyebrows bunched up. “I’ll wait for you.”

 

Shane fished out two 1-dollar bills from his pocket. He slammed it down on the booth, and claimed his bullets. With new ferocity, he began shooting and took down 6 of the plates.

 

“Oh, you won!” Ryan beamed.

 

He pointed to a random bear. Once he had gotten it, he shoved it into Ryan’s arms.

 

“Are you done?” Ryan asked unsurely. He was starting to get worried at the frenzied look in Shane’s eyes.

 

Shane slammed down more bills on the booth. He tapped his foot impatiently as the booth man fixed the metal plates that had fallen down. Once it was ready, he began shooting again. He got 6 again. Cussing loudly, he told the booth man to just get him any bear and give it to Ryan.

 

 _Fourth round_. 7 out of 10. A green bear with a tree patch sown on it’s chest.

 

 _Fifth round_. 5 out of 10. No prize.

 

 _Sixth round_. 6 out of 10. A mustard yellow bear with plastic sunglasses.

 

 _Seventh round._ 8 out of 10 _._ The first one from the middle shelf — a pink bear with a red bow.

 

“Shane, I think this is enough,” Ryan implored. His arms were getting sore from holding up the 6 teddy bears he had gotten.

 

 _Eight round._ 8 out of 10. A lavender bear with a flower crown.

 

 _Ninth round._ 6 out of 10. An orange bear wearing a coat.

 

 _Tenth round._ 9 out of 10. A dark blue bear in pajamas.

**__ **

“Shane, let’s go home,” Ryan begged. “You’ve already won plenty. You have nothing to prove to anyone.” The booth man had given him a small box to place his bears in.

 

“Yes, I do,” Shane replied with gritted teeth.

 

 _Eleventh round._ 5 out of 10. No prize.

 

“Come on, Madej,” Shane said to himself.

 

_Twelfth round. 7 out of 10. A cherry red bear with a sun hat._

Shane brought out the last 2 dollars he had. He breathed heavily as he contemplated that this was his last chance to prove to Ryan that he was a winner. With trembling hands, he exchanged the bills for the bullets.

 

Bang! _One down._ Bang! _Two down._ Bang! _Three down._ Bang! _Four down._ Bang! _Five down._ Bang! _Six down._ Bang! _Seven down._

**__ **

Shane broke into a cold sweat.

 

Bang! _Eight down._ Bang! _Nine down._

 

“You can do it, Shane Alexander Madej!” Ryan cheered. “One more!”

 

Shane closed his eyes as he took a deep breath. He filled his lungs with the cool air, the smell of corndogs, and something else — the scent of Ryan’s cologne. With a rush of fierce determination, he pointed his gun at the remaining plate.

 

Bang! _Ten down._

 

“Yes!” Ryan yelled, throwing himself against Shane’s side. “You did it!”

 

Shane felt the stiffness leave his face as he turned his lips up into a smile. Without worrying about the repercussions, he threw an arm around Ryan’s shoulder and pulled him close.

 

“The white ghost bear please,” he told the booth man.

 

“Sure thing, mister,” the booth man said happily. “You spent more here than any other person.”

 

Once he finally got the ghost bear, he turned to Ryan.

 

“I believe this is for you,” Shane said.

 

Ryan was looking up at him, his eyes shining with the same excitement he had earlier, but this time, it was Shane he was gazing at. He grinned widely and took the ghost bear from him.

 

“I can’t believe you blew off all your money just to win this,” Ryan mused. “And you may have also lost a part of your sanity.”

 

“I’m still perfectly sane.”

 

“I knew this would happen,” Ryan glared. “I knew you’d get too competitive.”

 

“It was worth it,” Shane replied. “Come on. I think it’s time to get you home.”

 

Shane picked up the box overflowing with the teddy bears he had won for Ryan. At the very top was the bear Conrad had given him.

 

“Do you mind?” Shane asked Ryan. The latter shook his head.

 

“You can have this back,” he said to the booth man, who accepted the bear back without any question.

 

Shane, feeling much better, hummed merrily as they walked to the parking lot. They were slow, owing to the ridiculous number of bears in Shane’s arms and the gigantic bear in Ryan’s. Shane sighed in relief as they reached his car and loaded the bears in the backseat.

 

“You’re bringing that thing to the front?” he asked Ryan, who was struggling to get into the passenger’s seat with the ghost bear.

 

“ _Its_ name is Boo.”

 

“ _Boo_? How original,” Shane snorted as he slid into the driver’s seat.

 

“Whatever. I’m not the one who went all crazy,” Ryan remarked. “I mean, seriously? Who obsesses that much over winning?”

 

“It’s that creep’s fault,” Shane defended. “He provoked me.”

 

“How’d he provoke you? He just gave me a bear!”

 

“Whatever.”

 

Ryan rolled his eyes. “And what am I supposed to do with all these teddy bears?”

 

“Keep them,” Shane smirked. “Then you’ll always remember me.”

 

He keyed the ignition. The car purred with life.

 

“Shane, look at me.”

 

Preparing himself for another reprimand, Shane hesitantly turned to Ryan. One second, he was looking at Ryan’s stupidly adorable face. The next second, Ryan was kissing him.

 

His eyes fluttered shut in surprise, but before he knew it, Ryan had pulled away. Shane looked at him dumbfoundedly. His lips were still tingling.

 

“What just happened?”

 

“Just drive,” Ryan commanded.

 

“Huh? Wait. Did we—”

 

“I said just drive.”

 

“But—”

 

“Drive,” Ryan dictated sharply, but Shane could see a smile on the corner of his lips.

 

“Alright,” Shane agreed with a smile of his own. He shifted the gear and pulled out of the parking lot.

 

 _‘Definitely worth it,’_ Shane thought earnestly, as they made their way back home.

 

_FIN._


End file.
